PERFORMANCE AND ASSET MANAGEMENT ANALYSES OF SELECTED VARIABLE-CONTENT PRIVATE PENSION FUNDS IN TURKEY

Abstract

Private pension mutual funds are the most developed investment instruments in the financial markets in recent years. Private pension funds exhibit variability with regards to the types of investments they hold and the corresponding levels of risk that are associated with those investments. Among these funds, variable (managed) pension funds are the group of funds that are constantly increasing in terms of both their share and size and show the best asset management performance of portfolio management companies. In this study, the performances of variable pension mutual funds were analyzed and it was aimed to measure the portfolio selectivity and market timing abilities of the managers of these funds. According to the analysis results, it has been observed that, as of the period under review, the performances of funds remained below average for most variables when compared to the benchmark indicators. Over time, and particularly in the last four-year period, there has been a noticeable improvement in performance outcomes. It has also been determined that only a subset of fund managers possess skills in selectivity and market timing. It has also been observed that the fund performance management system, which was implemented in 2020, has relatively improved fund performances. Another result of the research is that pension funds with different instrument contents have relatively more successful performance measures.